This is the next in a series of articles providing an in-depth analysis of each position group on the Green Bay Packers for 2024. Today we will analyze the defensive tackles. The grades will be for each unit as a whole, but we will give an analysis of each player, their strengths and weaknesses and where they stand heading into the offseason. Here are the grades for the Packers defensive tackles in 2024. The marks are based on a combination of expectations and performance.

You can see our final grade for the quarterbacks here.

The Packers run defense finished 7th in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game with 99.4 and 3rd in the league in average yards allowed per rush with 4.0. The Packers also ranked 7th in the league with 45 sacks.

Final Grades for the Best-Known Player of the Packers 2024 Defensive Tackles

Kenny Clark entered the season as the Packers top defensive tackle. He earned Pro Bowl honors in 2023. The Packers expected the new four-man front under Jeff Hafley to give Clark more opportunities to make plays.

Unfortunately, Clark suffered through a disappointing season. His numbers fell across the board. He went from 7.5 sacks to just one. His tackles for loss went down from nine a year ago to four this season.

The UCLA alum had only five quarterback hits after recording 16 in 2023.

The Other Starters Inside

T.J. Slaton started all 17 games again this season. He served as the team’s primary run stuffer in the middle of the line. Slaton made 30 total tackles including two tackles for loss and one sack. His primary job is to occupy blockers and hold at the point of attack.

Slaton saw his snap count go down in the new defense. In 2023, he played 56 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. This season, that number went down to 39 percent. He often came off the field on obvious passing downs.

Former first-round pick, Devonte Wyatt played 41 percent of the defensive snaps in the 14 games he played, down from 50 percent in 2023. Wyatt finished the season with five sacks and 23 total tackles. He also made nine tackles for loss.

Wyatt gives the Packers some pass rush push from the inside. The Packers would like to see more production from the former first-round pick in 2025.

Final Grades for the 2024 Packers Defensive Tackles: The Backups

The Packers had two primary backups inside on the defensive line in Colby Wooden and Karl Brooks.
Wooden played 13 games and started one. He made 20 total tackles including two tackles for loss. He also broke up two passes. As a rotational player, Wooden was in on 28 percent of the team’s defensive snaps, up from 23 percent in his rookie campaign.

Brooks played in all 17 games. He recorded 3.5 sacks, forced a fumble and recovered three. The Bowling Green alum made four tackles for loss and six quarterback hits. He does a better job of rushing the passer than Wooden does. Brooks played 41 percent of the team’s defensive snaps, up from 34 percent in 2024.

Brooks gives the team solid depth in the middle and may battle for a bigger role in 2025 as he starts his third NFL season.

Final Grade for the Packers 2024 Defensive Tackles

The change to a four-man front had mixed results for the defensive tackles. The defense did a great job of stopping the run this season and the tackles were a big part of that success.

However, the pass rush from the interior fell off and that was one of several reasons that Hafley had to blitz more often than he originally intended to.

The Packers are hoping for more from this group, especially when it comes to rushing the passer. A bounce back season from Clark would go a long way towards helping that happen.

FINAL GRADE: C+

 

 

Follow Gil Martin on Twitter @GilPackers

Click here for more great Packers coverage